5 Pitfalls of Leadership

Monday, January 22, 2007 at 01:46pm by David Askaripour in Life

1. Bravery >>

   For the most part, bravery is something that is good. Bravery pushes us to excel, helps us fight through fear and breakthrough insurmountable obstacles, and allows us to standup for what we what out of life. However, bravery can also lead to the entrepreneurs demise. The entrepreneur that is too brave may become reckless and take unnecessary risks that lead to destruction and major setbacks. Use bravery as a tool to keep you moving, not as a means to make rash decisions and take uncalculated risks.

2. Overly Cautious >>

   It’s okay to be cautious, but there is a thin line between caution and simply being scared to move forward with something. Too many times young entrepreneurs find themselves doing more “thinking” than “doing” because they spend all of their time trying to plan out their every move – not good. Procrastination is just fear in disguise. Don’t turn into a coward and never do the things that you’ve always want to do. Being overly cautious puts you and your business at risk from ever materializing your plans.

3. Anger >>

   Sure, we all have hot heads from time to time, that’s expected. However, you can’t let anger control you. An angry entrepreneur is extremely susceptible to making bad decisions because their minds are clouded with negative feelings. Anger makes you vulnerable to making “emotional” decisions instead of “rational and logical” decisions. The next time you feel your blood boiling, either take a break before proceeding with running your business or do everything in your power to isolate your anger and move forward with your work with composure and equanimity.

4. Sensitivity >>

   Ah, this one can be a killer to your business. It’s great to be a nice guy – who doesn’t like a nice guy? But there comes a time when you have to put your foot down and let people know exactly how you feel even if it hurts their feelings. I am guilty of being overly sensitive at times and sometimes find it hard to talk to people straight up, but it’s something that just has to be done. It’s good to be aware of other peoples feelings, but not to the extent that it’s going to jeopardize your business. Sometimes you just have to “do what you have to do.”

5. Worry >>

   The entrepreneur that lacks confidence is the entrepreneur who is going to make mistake after mistake, over and over again. You must have confidence in everything that you do! The ones who succeed in life are the ones who are fully confident (100%) in their mind that they have already won even before the task, battle, what have you, has begun. You have to win in your mind “first” before you win in the real world. If you aren’t confident about doing something, then chances are they you’ll never successfully do it, or you’ll make plenty of mistakes along the way. Be confident. Believe in yourself. You can do it!

The entrepreneur who considers himself a leader must be able to overcome these faults and pitfalls; you must be able to transcend and rise to the occasion of being a confident, brave, emotionally stable, and direct leader who executes plans and makes things happen. Find the balance, there’s room to improve within all leaders.

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